


Siege

by 00AwkwardPenguin00



Series: Dragon of the Yuyan [14]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Episode: s01e19-20 The Siege of the North, F/M, Gen, Pyrrhic Victory, Yeah I'm sorry, Zhao's here to fuck shit up, Zuko does not have a good time, all hail Koizilla, get y'all some tissues, nobody has a good time, remember how I've been saying that I'm not changing major canon events?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-13
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:55:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24698686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/00AwkwardPenguin00/pseuds/00AwkwardPenguin00
Summary: In which the Northern Water Tribe is under attack
Relationships: Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Yue (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Dragon of the Yuyan [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1582384
Comments: 329
Kudos: 3788
Collections: Finished111





	Siege

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MuffinLance](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MuffinLance/gifts).



> HERE IT IS

The Chief has called for everyone in the city to congregate in the meeting hall. Zuko and Katara flank Aang where he sits against one of the pillars, and Zuko can feel the kid trembling beside him. Katara is pale, but composed. Yue enters and ascends the dais to sit in a graceful kneel behind and to the right of her father. Sokka comes in a minute or so later, his face set in grim lines, to sit beside Katara.

"The day we have feared for so long has arrived," the Chief intones gravely. "The Fire Nation is on our doorstep. It is with great sadness that I call my family here before me, knowing well that some of these faces are about to vanish from our Tribe. But they will never vanish from our hearts. Now, as we approach the battle for our existence, I call upon the Great Spirits." He raises his arms in entreaty. "Spirit of the Ocean! Spirit of the Moon! Be with us!"

Zuko is not religious in any sense, but he finds himself adding his own prayers to Arnook's.  _ Agni, Spirit of the Sun, please shine your favor on us. Akai, Mighty Hunter of the Yuyan, help me protect my own. _

"I'm going to need volunteers for a dangerous mission," the Chief continues.

Sokka immediately stands up. "Count me in."

Katara whispers a protest, "Sokka…", but Zuko simply locks eyes with his friend, and offers him an arm-clasp in the style of the Water Tribe. The terrible blank grimness on his face melts a little, and Sokka accepts the clasp.

"Keep them safe," he whispers, and Zuko nods. Sokka strides up to the dais.

Midafternoon finds Zuko lined up with his squad and Appa along the Great Wall, which is lined with warriors and waterbenders all armed and staring out into the ocean. Zuko's swords are strapped to his back, along with his quiver, and his bow is in his hand, strung and ready. Everything is silent.

A ship appears on the horizon, then a flash of yellow. A fireball, but why are they firing from so far away? It'll only splash harmlessly into the water…

The explosion is thunderous as the fireball smashes into the Wall, throwing everyone in range up into the air in an avalanche of fire and snow and smoke. If Zuko were any less well trained, he would've lost his grip on his bow, but he manages to keep his fingers locked around it, and digs his way out of the snow. He can hear Sokka calling for Katara, and Katara's grunt as she bends her way out of the snow, and scrambles over to them.

"Aang's gone to meet the ship on Appa," Sokka reports. "The waterbenders are headed out to help him. I gotta get to the warrior barracks."

The ground shakes as another fireball crashes into the city, and the three of them duck. Ice and snow spray into the air around them.

**_The artillery they're using is more advanced than anything I've ever seen,_ ** Zuko signs rapidly.  **_Nothing like this has ever passed through the Stronghold. I think Zhao did some major ass-kissing. He's the only Admiral in the field high enough in the Fire Lord's favor to be able to requisition the latest technology._ **

The roar of the fireballs and the explosions of their collision are too loud to try to shout over, so Sokka switches to hand-language.  **_You think Zhao's in command of the attack?_ **

**_He's the one in charge of the Fire Nation's manhunt for the Avatar, and it's not like we've been_ ** **_hiding_ ** **_our destination,_ ** Zuko replies.  **_The last attack the Fire Nation launched on the Northern Water Tribe was over eighty years ago. The Fire Lord would be see the Avatar's presence here as the perfect excuse to repay the Tribe for that defeat. And Zhao would never pass up an opportunity for more glory._ **

**_I'll make sure A-R-N-O-O-K knows,_ ** Sokka signs.  **_I gotta go. Take care of yourselves, both of you._ **

Katara hugs him, and Zuko clasps his arm again. Sokka rushes off, and Katara turns to Zuko.

**_I may be Pakku's favorite student, but there's still no way that any of the men will let me help,_ ** she signs, only stumbling a little.  **_And there's not much you can do here without firebending. We should get to higher ground, out of range of the fireballs before you're forced to save us from burning up and blow your cover._ **

Zuko nods, unstringing his bow and slipping it into his quiver. They race through the city together, following the flood of civilians fleeing the lower city. More than once, Zuko has to act quickly when a fireball comes too close, and he really, really hopes that no one notices. Finally, soaked and singed, they make it to the meeting hall. Princess Yue is there, directing people to shelter and organizing supplies. Her hands tremble, but her voice is strong as she talks to guards and soothes frightened people.

Katara offers the Princess their assistance, and Yue gratefully puts Katara to work reinforcing the walls and pillars of the meeting hall with her waterbending. Zuko watches her back, shooing off anyone looking to start trouble with heated glares and some judicious posing with his hand on the hilt of his swords.

Katara is kept constantly busy by the fireballs crashing into the city and causing everything to shake like a volcanic eruption. Yue comes to check on them periodically, leaving Zuko bites of food and cups of tea to press on the waterbender whenever she stops for a breather. Zuko really wants to resent the princess for the way she keeps yanking his best friend around, but he keeps getting disarmed by her kindness and concern for Katara, and charmed by her attempts to strike up a conversation with him despite not being able to understand his hand-language. They settle into a pattern of yes or no questions, and as the afternoon and evening wind down and things settle a bit, Katara is able to contribute to the conversation as well, interpreting Zuko's answers to Yue's questions. 

The barrage ends at twilight, and some of the waterbenders who had been working on damage control in the city come to the meeting hall to take over for Katara. Yue leads the pair of them out to the balcony, looking out over the city and the Ironclad-infested waters beyond.

"They've stopped firing," Yue sighs with relief.

"Aang!" Katara calls, and Zuko spots Appa soaring in to collapse in a heap in the courtyard below. Aang slides down his head to sit with his knees up and his hands pressed to his head as the three of them hurry towards him.

"I can't do it… I can't do it…" He's murmuring exhaustedly.

"What happened?" Katara asks.

"I must've taken out a dozen Fire Navy ships but there's just too many of them," Aang sighs, barely audible in his exhaustion. "I can't fight them all."

"But you have to! You're the Avatar!" Yue pleads, and Zuko nearly growls.

"I'm just one kid," Aang whimpers, and hides his face in his folded arms. Katara crouches next to him and puts a hand on his shoulder. Zuko takes a knee in front of him, and snaps his fingers softly. 

**_Food,_ ** he signs when dazed stormy eyes land on him.  **_Rest. The attack won't begin again until dawn. We have until then to figure out a plan._ **

Aang nods, and allows Zuko to loop his arm around Zuko's neck and wrap an arm around the kid's skinny frame. Katara hovers close as Zuko hauls the kid up, feeling the shaking exhaustion in the younger boy's muscles. Yue leads the way up to the meeting hall, and further up to what must be the Chief's quarters. She calls for some food to be brought up, and Aang falls upon it like a ravening wolf-bat. When the food is gone, Katara leads him gently to a pile of fluffy-looking pelts, and for once the exhausted boy says nothing about "dead animal skins", just flops down and is out like a light, Momo curled up on his chest.

Zuko slings off his quiver and dao, rolling his shoulders as the weight of them dissipates. He drops onto another pile of furs and sets the quiver on his right and his dao on his left, and starts pulling out arrows to inspect them. Katara parks herself in an open area of the room and runs through bending forms dry, while Yue takes out a parka and works on some mending.

Aang wakes up just after sunset, and Yue asks everyone to join her to watch the moonrise. Aang slouches after the girls as they head out to the balcony off the Chief's quarters, and Zuko hurriedly stuffs his arrows back into his quiver and follows.

The moon is very nearly full as it rises over the city and bathes everything in pure white light, and Yue's voice is quiet as she talks about how her tribe learned waterbending from it. Zuko thinks about how his own people learned firebending from the dragons, and feels an odd stab of resentment at his uncle for having killed the last one long before he was born.

"I've always noticed my waterbending is stronger at night," Katara murmurs wonderingly.

"Our strength comes from the Spirit of the Moon," Yue recites, like a long memorized truth. "Our life comes from the Spirit of the Ocean. They work together to keep balance."

"The spirits!" Aang suddenly gasps, and jerks his head up, startling Momo into curling around Katara's head. "Maybe I can find them and get their help!"

Zuko finds his skepticism mirrored on Yue's face. "How can you do that?"

"The Avatar is the bridge between our world and the spirit world!" Katara says, brightening with every word. "Aang can talk to them!"

This is news to Zuko, but Yue seems to buy it completely. "Maybe they'll give you the wisdom to win this battle!"

"Or maybe they'll unleash a crazy amazing spirit attack on the Fire Nation!" Aang exclaims, flinging his arms out excitedly, a huge and slightly manic grin on his face. Zuko slaps his forehead and tries to ignore how the Avatar just wished for his country to be destroyed. Aang suddenly gets a clue and wilts sheepishly. "Or wisdom. That's good too."

Katara frowns. "The only problem is, the last time you got into the spirit world by accident. How are you going to get there this time?"

Zuko has no clue what she's talking about; he can only assume that it was something that had happened before he'd joined up. He's not entirely sure he believes what he's hearing, but he follows Yue anyway as she leads them down and out of the meeting hall to an actual stone fence with a small, circular gate.

"So is this the way to the spirit world?" Aang asks curiously.

Yue giggles. "No, you'll have to get there on your own. But I can take you to the most spiritual place in the entire North Pole." She opens the door, and gestures for everyone to enter. Zuko brings up the rear, but something flashes in the peripheral vision of his right eye and he pauses, a hand hovering over one of his throwing knives as he studies the courtyard. Nothing jumps out at him, though, so he clambers through and pulls the door shut behind him.

The first thing that hits him is the  _ warmth _ . Balmy and breezy, it's an almost shocking difference from the temperature on the other side of the gate. Zuko immediately soaks it in, feeling like a pygmy-puma basking in a puddle of sunlight on the hard-packed ground of the Stronghold courtyard. He saunters after the girls as they cross one of the huge bridges to the little grassy island in the center of the clear pond, following Aang who leaps in giant bounds like freaking gravity has no meaning for him, laughing like the child he's supposed to be.

"I never thought I'd miss grass this much!" Aang chortles, laying down on the ground with a happy sigh.

"It's so warm here! How is this possible?" Katara breathes, looking around and pulling off her anorak.

"It's the center of all spiritual energy in our land," Yue replies, also gracefully removing her much fancier anorak.

Momo creeps up to the edge of the little pond and starts trying to grab at the two koi fish circling within it, but stops and shrinks back when he sees the glares the girls are giving him. Zuko scans the tiny and deep valley they're in––the nearly sheer walls of the glacier behind them are taller than anything Zuko's ever seen, but the stone wall they had passed through looked so easy to scale that he could've done it in his sleep. So as Aang settles himself in his favorite meditation pose, Zuko takes the opportunity to shuck off his own anorak and rearrange his weapons for optimal combat readiness. He strings his bow and nocks an arrow, and starts circling the little island in a tightly proscribed patrol, eyes scanning the low wall. The girls talk quietly, Aang snaps at them, and then suddenly the fish in the pond catch his attention…

Zuko nearly jumps out of his skin as Aang's eyes and tattoos suddenly burst into bright white light that settles into a steady glow.

"Is he okay?" Yue asks with alarm.

"He's crossing into the spirit world," Katara explains, shooting a reassuring look at Zuko as well. "He'll be fine as long as we don't move his body. That's his way back to the physical world." Zuko nods, getting the message. He starts up his patrol route again, keeping Aang at the center of it.

"Maybe we should get some help," Yue presses, starting toward one of the bridges.

"No, he's our friend," Katara reassures her. "Zuko and I are perfectly capable of protecting him."

Zuko admires her confidence, but he definitely wouldn't mind some backup. He turns to her and snaps for her attention, and makes the sign for the sound "sss", motioning like he's throwing the sign the way one would throw a boomerang.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, that's probably a good idea," Katara nods. "Yue, maybe go find Sokka and tell him where we are, please?"

"Of course," Yue replies. She gathers her anorak and slips out the door. 

Now that the civilian is out of the way, Zuko can devote his entire attention to ensuring his friend's safety. Katara keeps close, while he continues to range in front of the little koi pond, across the bridges, and in front of the stone wall. He really, really wants to perch on top of the gate behind the koi pond, where he'll have a much better vantage point and be able to see the entire stone wall, but he needs Sokka to help cover Katara and Aang.

Something  _ zings _ through the air, and it's the barest instinct that causes Zuko to duck. A slim ice dart buries itself in the wood of the bridge Zuko is standing on, and he immediately aims and shoots in the direction that the dart came from. 

His arrow  _ thunks _ into the sloped roof on top of the stone wall, as a trio of waterbenders ride a wave up over the stone wall, the first shooting ice darts as his fellows control the wave. Zuko dodges each one, allowing the man to herd him back to the solid ground of the Oasis island, dropping his bow and drawing his swords as he goes. The waterbenders freeze the water between the stone wall and the island and array themselves upon it.

"What in the name of Tui and La are you  _ doing _ ?" Katara demands behind him, and he can hear water flowing as she prepares to bend.

"Lee of the Earth Kingdom has been accused of being a firebender, and a Fire Nation infiltrator and saboteur,” the man in the center of the formation declares. “We have been ordered to bring him before our Chief to face judgement.” Behind them, the gate to the Oasis opens to admit over a dozen non-bending warriors, all armed to the teeth.

_ Fucking rhino shit, _ Zuko thinks, clenching his jaw.  _ They really think NOW is a good time for this? _

Katara seems to agree with him, because her voice is as frigid as the ice she bends. “This is absolutely ridiculous! You really think this should be a priority when the Fire Nation is ready to blast through the wall as soon as dawn breaks?!”

The unwavering combat stances of all of the men facing them say that  _ yes, this is a priority and needs to be addressed immediately. _ From a defensive standpoint he can see where they’re coming from, but his temper still flares at the timing. He’s also kicking himself for getting sloppy enough with his bending to get caught, but he couldn’t have let those fireball explosions hurt all those people. Maybe they’ll let him plead his case if he goes quietly.

He sheathes his swords, picks up and unstrings his bow, and slips it back into his quiver. Then he stands still and allows the warriors to remove his weapons and bind his hands and arms tightly behind his back with strong rope. He can practically feel Katara seething behind him, and feels kind of bad for the guard who informs her that she’s required to come as well.

“No,” she snaps. “I’m not leaving the Avatar undefended!”

In the end, despite Katara’s furious protests, all three of them are dragged, marched, and carried into the meeting hall. Sokka is already there, arguing loud and furious with an older warrior while Yue talks quietly with Arnook as they sit on the dais. Pakku sits on the dais as well, arms folded and scowling fiercely.

Aang, still unconscious and glowing, is laid out with reverent care on a fluffy pelt, Katara kneeling beside him watchfully. Sokka is forced to stand beside them, a warrior keeping him back with a spear.

Zuko is dumped unceremoniously before the dais on his knees, and it takes everything he has in him to keep from losing himself to the panic the position always inspires in him. He needs to keep a clear head.

“Lee of the Earth Kingdom, several of my people have brought before me allegations that you are a firebender,” Arnook intones, voice booming around the silent hall. Glancing to his right, Zuko can see several people whose lives he had saved from the fireball explosions earlier that day, furious-looking men and terrified-looking women and children, and feels his heart sink.

“Do you deny these allegations?”

Zuko shakes his head. The hall fills with gasps. He keeps his eyes on the base of the dais.

“Are you allied with the Fire Nation?” Arnook demands.

Zuko shakes his head firmly, and jerks it in the direction of his squad.

“Chief, please allow me to speak in Lee’s defense!” Sokka demands. Arnook’s expression remains suspicious, but he nods, and the guard holding Sokka back lifts his spear. Sokka strides over to Zuko’s side, squeezes his shoulder, and turns to face Arnook.

“Lee came to us after rescuing Aang from Pohuai Stronghold,” he began. “He defected from the Fire Nation army, and has been serving as Aang’s personal bodyguard and firebending teacher. Lee would sooner slit his own throat than betray Aang.”

Zuko nods firmly. Arnook’s granite visage softens a fraction, Yue is the picture of warm poise, and Pakku looks rather bored. But the rest of the warriors and combat benders of the tribe look unconvinced.

Arnook seems to recognize this, his slate gray eyes glancing around before landing once again on Zuko. 

“I need time to think on this,” he intones, and while his voice is as frigid as a mountain wind, the furrowing of his brow and the nearly imperceptible droop of his shoulders screams apologetic. “And the battle will resume very soon. Secure Lee of the Fire Nation in the stone cells. We will address this issue again when the battle is over.”

Noise erupts all around him, but Zuko barely hears any of it. All he can hear is the thought echoing in his head  _ at least they didn’t kill me. _

Sokka has his arms wrapped around Zuko’s shoulders, whispering urgently into his unburned ear. “As soon as Aang comes back from the spirit world we’ll come get you. Hang in there, buddy, it’s gonna be okay, I swear.”

Zuko can only nod as the guards yank him out of Sokka’s arms and whisk him away.

The stone cells turn out to be just that— tiny boxes carved out of the rock upon which the entire glacier sits, down below the meeting hall. The guards untie him, push him inside, and slam the heavy iron door shut with a clang that reverberates in Zuko’s ears and rattles his bones. Zuko tries to stand, and nearly cracks his head on the ceiling. He cautiously spreads his arms out, and his fingers touch the smooth, frigid stone walls on each side without his arms fully extending. He shuffles around until one hand brushes the iron door, then tries again. This time he can fully extend his arms, but both hands are pressed flat against the back wall and the door. 

The cell is cold. It is dark. It is silent.

Suddenly the walls aren’t stone, but the smooth metal of an Ironclad brig cell. He can feel the faintest of vibrations beneath his feet, from the coal engines powering the ship. His burn  _ hurts _ .

He doesn’t know where he’s going. He doesn’t know if he’ll live long enough to get there. He’s so  _ cold _ , and everything  _ hurts _ , and why hadn’t Father just killed him? He’d passed out on the floor of the dueling arena, and had woken up here, with his head shaved completely and his wound bandaged, so at some point he’d been to the infirmary. Or at least been attended to by some kind of medical professional. A quiet assassination would have been much simpler to arrange than whatever  _ this _ is. Is he a prisoner? Is he being transported somewhere just to be killed upon arrival? Zuko doesn’t understand what’s happening, and somehow that’s even  _ more _ terrifying than the darkness or the cold or the pain.

He wedges himself into the farthest corner he can, curling up into the smallest, tightest ball he can manage. He wants Mom. He wants Uncle. He wants Master Piandao.

He has no idea how long he’s spent in the brig cell. Long enough for nearly his entire body to go numb. He can’t feel the sun, can’t tell if it’s been minutes or hours or days or weeks.

The door crashes open. Zuko cringes back, cringes further when a whimper escapes. 

“Zuko!” A voice says. Female. Familiar. One of the marines on guard duty?

“What’s wrong with him?” A second voice asks. A child’s voice. High, frightened. What is a  _ child _ doing on a prisoner transport ship?

“I don’t know, but we gotta get him out of there,” a third voice explains. Male, young but nearly grown, still creaking and cracking like the ship in a storm. “Zuko? Hey, buddy, can you hear me?”

Soft footsteps approach, so quiet compared to the ringing clangs of the guards’ boots on the metal floors, but Zuko cringes back again anyway. 

“Zuko, it’s okay, it’s just me, just Sokka,” the young male voice continues, low and soothing. Sokka. Why does that name sound familiar? “I said we were gonna come get you out as soon as Aang came back from the spirit world, didn’t I? Well he’s back, and here we are! Sorry it took so long, buddy.”

Buddy. None of the guards on the ship call him that, if they deign to speak to him at all. Either they’re coldly dismissive of him, or they call him things that make him want to curl into a ball and cry forever. Zuko hasn’t heard any kind of term of endearment or nickname since the last time Uncle called him “my nephew”.

“Zuko, buddy, wherever you are, whatever you’re seeing, it’s not real,” Sokka’s voice continues, low and calm. “I’m going to touch your arm now. Please don’t roast me.” The last is said playfully, like a long-running joke, as a long-fingered hand clad in a leather fingerless glove lands gently on Zuko’s arm. Zuko’s shoulders tighten painfully and he flinches hard, expecting the sudden searing heat of a burn, but it never comes. The hand squeezes very gently, then rubs a little bit, only an inch or so in either direction up and down his forearm.

“There you go, man, see? Not gonna hurt ya. Can you open your eyes?” Sokka’s voice is jovial, upbeat, but Zuko can also hear a not-so-well-hidden note of tension. Something is  _ wrong _ , and suddenly everything clicks back into place. He’s not on the ship that spent a month making the two week journey from Caldera to the Western Earth Kingdom. He’s at the North Pole, in a stone cell because some idiot people saw him bending to save all their skins and turned him in as a potential spy. He blinks open his eyes.

The cell is now filled with cool blue light spilling from the open doorway. Sokka is crouched directly in front of him, hand still resting gently on his forearm, while a grim-looking Katara and dismayed Aang peer in from the door.

“Back with us now, Jerkbender?” Sokka asks, a strained smirk on his face.

Zuko nods, trying to rub feeling back into his frozen face. 

“C’mon, let’s get you out of here, you’re nearly frozen solid.” Sokka grips Zuko’s arm and pulls him gently to his feet and out of the cell. Katara immediately attacks him with his anorak, which he pulls on gratefully. 

There’s a lingering tremor in his fingers as he signs,  **_How long was I in there?_ **

Katara’s eyebrows angle down, and her lips pull back in a grimace of fury. “Nearly 12 hours—Aang got back from the spirit world fifteen minutes ago, and he pretty much had to promise that you’d never leave his side before they’d tell us where you were. Yue tried, but you know how women are treated here.” 

That’s when Zuko notices Yue standing a respectful distance away, beautiful face grave. She meets his eyes and bows gracefully.

“Zuko of the Fire Nation, on behalf of the People of the Northern Water Tribe, I beg your forgiveness for our treatment of you, especially after the risks you took to protect us,” she says formally.

Despite not having been at Court for the last two and a half years, it seems that the training of thirteen years never fully goes away. Zuko bows with the Flame, low and formal, eyes fixed on the hem of her fine robes. Yue’s eyes are wide when he meets them again, but she says nothing.

“Zuko, we need to get back to the Oasis!” Aang bursts out, grabbing onto Zuko’s arm. Zuko’s rather glad he’s got his wits about him again—if Aang had tried that even two minutes before, the kid would’ve gotten his arrow singed off. As it is, Zuko only jumps a little, but Katara still gives Aang a stinkeye. Aang doesn’t even notice, gray eyes wide and worried. “The spirits are in trouble! Someone’s gonna kill the moon and ocean spirits!”

Zuko’s heart literally skips a beat. It shouldn’t even be possible—spirits can’t be killed, only banished back to the spirit world for a time. Uncle had told him stories Before, but apparently he hadn’t known that the  _ actual fucking Spirits of the Moon and Ocean are living in MORTAL FORMS IN THE HUMAN WORLD. _

Zuko wishes he has his weapons, but there’s no time to find them. He just has to hope that the spirits will forgive him for firebending in their sacred place.

Yue leads them at a run up and out of the cells. The moment they exit into the long back courtyard behind the meeting hall, the moon suddenly turns red. A total lunar eclipse, but the Sages hadn’t predicted the next one for another year. 

“The Moon Spirit!” Aang groans, holding his head as Katara steadies him. Yue whimpers and leans heavily on Sokka.

There are two Fire Nation marines standing guard outside the gate to the Oasis, but they’re no match for Zuko. He doesn’t even need to bend to take them out—his training with the Yuyan included non-bending close combat, and he’s able to drop both soldiers before they can register his presence. Aang breezes past him, staff in hand, the only sign of his physical distress being some pinching around the eyes. Zuko and Katara follow him into the Oasis and nearly run into his back when he stops short.

Fucking  _ Zhao _ is standing at the edge of the koi pond, a soaked, wriggling bag held aloft in one fist. The other is held in point blank firing range. His face is lit up with the single most infuriating smirk Zuko has seen since the last time he saw Azula, and Zuko is suddenly on fire with the desire to rip the man’s arms off and beat him to death with them.

“Zhao, don’t!” Aang says, dropping his staff and holding his hands up.

“It’s my destiny,” Zhao replies, eerily calm, “to destroy the Moon… and the Water Tribe.”

If any of his previous experience with the Admiral hadn’t cemented in Zuko’s mind that the man was absolutely  _ wolf-batshit fucking crazy _ , this would’ve done it. For the first time in  _ years _ , Zuko actually wants to cuss the moron out in his own voice, but the resultant panic attack wouldn’t be worth the satisfaction.

Aang is trying to reason with him, but Zuko can tell already that it’s a lost cause.  _ Men without reason cannot be reasoned with _ , he remembers the Commander commenting once, during one of their discussions about the current state of the Fire Nation. He had been talking about Ozai, but Zuko thinks the adage could definitely apply to Zhao as well. He locks eyes with the Admiral and signs, slowly so that the man who spent two months using the Yuyan Archers as his own personal strike force can understand,  **_If you kill that fish, I will kill you._ **

Zhao’s eyes widen comically in shock before his face crumples into a study in wrath. “You,” he snarls, “ _ Blue Spirit. _ I should turn you to ashes and present them to the Fire Lord. The only fitting end for traitors.”

Zuko barely registers the threat, so complete is his rage toward this perfect example of everything wrong about his poor country.  **_Put the fish down and try it,_ ** he orders, his lips curling back into a savage grin.

Their gazes are locked for a moment, then Zhao stiffly kneels down and releases the fish back into the pond. Zuko yanks his anorak off again, his chi too hot for the heavy coat. Zhao stands beside the pond, stiff as a sheet of iron plating.

Then he strikes.

A plume of fire engulfs the koi pond with Zhao’s snarl of frustration.

The flames die away…

…and so does the moon.

Zuko  _ roars _ like an enraged dragon and leaps at Zhao, who barely has time to duck the nearly white hot blast Zuko shoots at him. He turns and runs like the coward he is, and Zuko snarls and chases after him.

He corners Zhao on a bridge, and finally the bastard actually  _ fights _ . The man has nearly a foot and almost fifty pounds on Zuko, and uses every inch and ounce to his advantage. But his technique is still as sloppy as it had been when he’d attacked Jeong-Jeong’s camp, and Zuko is able to use his superior speed and agility and the half-practiced redirections he'd learned from watching the waterbenders to even the playing field. Even so, it’s a brutal fight, growing more difficult the longer it lasts.

Finally Zuko is able to knock the Admiral off his feet with a powerful two-handed blast, and suddenly the moon reappears. Zhao stares at it in devastation.

“No!” He groans, and struggles to stand. Zuko keeps his fists up, despite his entire body screaming in protest.

With the light of the full moon, Zhao glares at him, then his eyes go wide with shock as they land on his scar.

“You… you’re  _ Prince Zuko _ ,” he breathes. “You’re alive? There were all kinds of conspiracy theories… but everyone thinks you’re dead!” Then a malicious smirk replaces the shock. “They say the Dragon of the West went mad when he learned you’d died. First his son, and then the spineless nephew he’d all but adopted. He hasn’t been seen since the day after the Fire Lord put you in your place. Probably shut himself away on some deserted island like the weak doddering fool he is, if not just dead by his own hand—!”

Zuko had been moving in a kata to roast Zhao on the spot, his entire body burning with the desire to incinerate the bastard, when glowing blue fingers of water reach up from the canal below and converge on Zhao. Zuko watches dumbly as they wrap around the man like a boa-pede constricting its prey and lift him into the air. Then the shock wears off a little bit as he realizes that the glowing blue thing is dragging Zhao down to the water, and Zuko jumps onto the edge of the bridge and reaches out his hand, thinking nothing more than  _ drowning is an awful way for a firebender to die. _

But Zhao looks at his hand, looks at him, and sneers. Zuko can only watch as the arrogant, stupid man disappears into the glowing blue water of the canal.

For a while, all he can do is stand, and shake, and think  _ fuck, fuck, fuck _ in an endless loop.

Then he remembers his squad, hopefully safe back in the Oasis, and kicks himself viciously for abandoning them. He’s gotta get back there.

The city is almost completely destroyed, but Zuko doesn’t see a single Fire Nation soldier as he marches slowly and stiffly back up to the meeting hall. The ships have all vanished as well. It’s as if the entire attack had been a hurricane—blowing up out of nowhere, creating chaos, and then disappearing without a trace, leaving destruction as the only sign it had ever been there at all. It’s eerie, and it creeps Zuko out something fierce. He’s not sure he wants to know what he’d missed in his rage-maddened pursuit of Zhao.

He reaches the gate to the Oasis and lets himself in. Sokka and Katara are crouched together in front of the koi pond, with an older woman sobbing on her knees a short distance away. Zuko vaguely recognizes her as Yugoda, the Chief Healer. Aang and Yue are nowhere to be seen. 

The siblings look up as Zuko approaches, and the devastation on Sokka’s face sends a dagger straight through Zuko’s heart. He races over to them and throws himself on his knees beside Katara, holding the sign for the sound “aaa” to his forehead and raising his eyebrow muscles as high as he can in question. He’d thought he’d used up all his adrenaline fighting Zhao, but his heart still races as he waits for someone to tell him where his spirits-damned student is.

“Aang went into the Avatar State,” Katara explains, blue eyes luminous with tears. “He… merged with the Ocean Spirit. I dunno where he is right now.”

As if summoned by name, Aang enters the Oasis, supported by Chief Arnook himself. The Chief gently lowers the kid, who more resembles an overcooked noodle than a human being at the moment, into Katara’s arms, and the waterbender crushes him to her chest and sobs with relief.

“Where is my daughter?” The Chief asks. “Where is Yue?”

Sokka lets out the worst sound Zuko’s ever heard, an awful mix of a dry sob and a hoarse laugh, and staggers to his feet. Zuko is there in an instant, wrapping his brother’s arm around his neck and bracing him to stand.

“She’s there, sir,” Sokka grits out, and points to the white fish in the koi pond, whole and untouched and swimming in an oblivious circle with the black fish.

Sokka turns and starts sobbing brokenly into Zuko’s neck, and all Zuko can do is hold his brother tight, and curse his family line in the silence of his own mind.

The Chief, pale and with silent tears streaming down his face, has the four of them escorted to the same private apartments that Yue had taken them to just last night, and the three younger kids all pass out together curled up on a pile of thick, fluffy pelts. Zuko is exhausted, of course he is, but he's still too wired to sleep, and it doesn't help that he still doesn't have his weapons. He doesn't want to leave his squad to go find them either––he's still pissed at himself for doing so to chase after Zhao, and he's sure that Sokka is going to have some things to say to him once he wakes up.

The curtain in the doorway parts to reveal Master Pakku, also looking exhausted, but carrying Zuko's dao, quiver, and a rather pointy-looking sack. Another person follows the waterbending Master into the room, carrying a writing set and a stack of paper, but after leaving the items on the table, they leave as well. Then it's just Zuko and Pakku, eyeing each other up, as the rest of Zuko's squad snores behind him.

"I suspected that you would want all of these back," Pakku says, quietly, and it sounds like he's trying for his usual dismissive tone but is just too tired to manage it. He places the weapons on the table as well, beside the writing set, and Zuko waits for him to sit back with his hands folded in his lap before snatching up his weapons and inspecting them, one at a time, for tampering. The dao and quiver appear to be completely untouched, even Pandan the stuffed turtleduck is still tucked safely away in his hidden pocket in the quiver, and Zuko is so relieved that he can't stop his hands from shaking. The pointy-looking sack does end up containing all four dozen of his throwing knives, and Uncle's pearl dagger, which Zuko clutches to his chest like the precious heirloom it is.

"You know, you're the second firebender I've ever actually met?"

Zuko snaps back to attention, staring at Pakku with wide eyes. The Master's pale gray gaze flickers about Zuko's face, studying him.

"The first was about six, almost seven years ago now," Pakku continues, turning to stare distantly out the window at the devastated city. "He just showed up one day, in a rowboat of all things, and I've never seen a more wretched looking man in my life. I nearly sank his boat with him in it when he introduced himself, but he somehow convinced the Chief that he meant no harm, only that he was looking for someone to play Pai Sho with. My Chief commanded me to put him up in my own house, mostly because I was the one most suited to keep an eye on him, and I have no wife or children to worry about putting in danger. He watched me teach my students, asked me more questions than I had ever heard, and told me about his home, and his family, and the son he'd lost and the one he'd left behind that wasn't actually his, but more his than his brother's. He thoroughly trounced me at Pai Sho, as well, and after a while I came to understand why he was so famous to his own people. It took about three or four months, but I finally beat him a few times, and after the fifth time he grinned at me and thanked me for my hospitality, and the next day he left. Several months later he sent me a long letter and a picture of his son that he'd left behind, that he had reunited with and was doing his best to protect from the monster who had sired him. We continued to exchange letters, secretly, and in that way he introduced me to other Masters of other bending and non-bending disciplines from all over the world, with whom I became trusted friends."

A woman enters with a tea service, cups and a teapot made of polished white bone. She sets it down on the table, pours for Pakku and Zuko, and leaves the teapot and three more cups for when the others wake up. Pakku thanks her, and she bows and leaves.

"I daresay it's probably not as good as what my friend is capable of, but it suits its purpose," Pakku says casually, taking a sip. 

Zuko sipped his tea as well, appreciating the warmth.

Pakku heaves a sigh, and continues quietly. "Almost three years ago, I received a letter from one of our mutual friends. My friend the firebender was with him, recovering from yet another devastating blow. His second son, the son of his heart, had been killed by his brother, the boy's sire. Letters flew like birds in those weeks, as we all tried to keep our dear friend from doing something irrevocable. Finally, it seemed like he had finally turned a corner, though his sorrow was still massive, and with our blessings, my firebending friend set off to create a new life for himself. Last I heard of him, he had settled somewhere in the Earth Kingdom, though I have no idea where.”

Zuko stares down at his tea, a storm raging in his chest. He would give anything to see Uncle again, to listen to his silly proverbs and drink his tea and feel his deceptively strong arms around him again. But his poor uncle, who had been more of a father to him than Ozai had ever been, had spent the last few years thinking he was dead. He had a new life now, far away from the pain that Ozai happily inflicted from his throne in Caldera, away from the memories of two boys he hadn’t been able to save. What right did Zuko have to intrude on that hard won peace?

He didn’t. Uncle Iroh deserves to live out the rest of his days free from Zuko’s issues, from the danger his association with Aang puts him in. There will be time after the war, if they win, to reunite, or at least for Iroh to receive word of Zuko’s survival and ascension and seek him out if he so chose. And if they lose… well then, Iroh already thought he was dead. No need to break the old general’s heart a third time.

Zuko takes brush in hand, and writes on the provided paper,  _ Thank you for telling me, but the new life he’s built for himself is his best protection. Me seeking him out would put him in danger. _

Pakku’s nose wrinkles a little bit, but he shrugs and drains his tea.

Something occurs to Zuko, and he writes,  _ You’ve known who I am this entire time, haven’t you? _

“I had my suspicions, but I wasn’t able to confirm until just now, when I was able to get a good look at you,” Pakku replies. “The only picture I’ve seen of you is nearly six years out of date, you know. But Iroh liked to watch my lessons from the same spot on the Great Stairs that you prefer, when you watch to make sure that I am giving Pupil Katara the same level of instruction that I give the male students.” Pakku tries to give him an intimidating look, but Zuko’s stared down much worse than him, and simply raises an eyebrow in response. The corner of Pakku’s mouth ticks up, and if Zuko hadn’t spent two and a half years in a culture that relied nearly exclusively on body language for communication, he never would have seen it.

Zuko’s exhaustion hits him like a wall, and it’s all he can do to keep from falling over where he sits. At this point, the only thing keeping him awake and upright is his own dogged stubbornness.

“Sleep, Prince Zuko,” Pakku commands, picking up his empty teacup. “You’ll be safe here.”

Zuko has no choice but to trust the man, since he can barely keep his eyes open. He fumbles Pandan out of his secret pocket, hugs the turtleduck and Uncle’s dagger to his chest, and snuggles up against Aang, back to back facing the doorway to the room. He doesn’t hear Pakku leave, because he’s already fallen into jasmine-scented dreams.

**Author's Note:**

> Thus ends Book 1
> 
> Next time: **FUBAR**
> 
> Did I rip your heart out? Shout at me [here](https://awkwardpenguinproductions.tumblr.com).


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